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The K-pop industry has seen exponential growth over the last decade. With both male and female K-pop groups becoming household names across the globe, the metrics of success have been redefined.
Using data collected from Allkpop and Koreansalestwt, a list of the highest-selling male K-pop groups from the beginning of their career to date can be drawn up.
Disclaimer: This data set includes only album sales and is restricted to South Korea and Japan.
Who is the highest-selling male K-pop group so far?
5) Seo Taiji and Boys
Seo Taiji and Boys remain a tough set of artists to outsell, despite being the very group that inspired much of what we call the "K-pop industry" today. They debuted in 1992 and were estimated to have sold over 8 million albums in mid-2019.
Their albums "Seo Taiji and Boys IV" and "Seo Taiji and Boys II" sold over 2 million copies each, in South Korea alone. The first and third installments of their albums sold over 1.5 million copies each.
4) SEVENTEEN
SEVENTEEN is Pledis Entertainment's 13-member K-pop boy group. They debuted in 2015 and have reportedly sold over 9.6 million album copies.
The group's best-selling album is "Your Choice," which was released on June 18, 2021. The six-track album sold 1.36 million copies during its debut week. A close second for SEVENTEEN is "Heng:garae," which was released a year ago and sold 1.4 million copies in total.
3) TVXQ
TVXQ is a duo K-pop group under SM Entertainment. Previously, they were a group of 5. In both South Korea and Japan, TVXQ has sold over 12.1 million copies of its albums.
TVXQ is extremely popular in Japan, with them being the first foreign artist in Japan to release four number-one studio albums in a row. Many of their albums are platinum-certified by the RIAJ. Their best-selling album is MIROTIC, which sold over 605,000 plus copies in South Korea.
2) EXO
EXO is second on this list. The SM Entertainment K-pop boy group has sold around 13.5 million copies of their albums.
Many of their albums have sold well over 1 million copies. From 2013 to 2017, they had the best-selling album each year in South Korea. EXO's best-selling album is "Don't Mess Up My Tempo," which released in 2018 with a little under 2 million sales in their home country.
1) BTS
Reportedly, BTS has sold over 32.7 million copies of its albums in total. They are a seven-member K-pop boy band that debuted in 2013 with their single album "2 Cool 4 Skool."
They are currently the best-selling group in South Korea. Their album, "Map of the Soul: 7," is the best-selling album in the country with over 4.5 million sales. Four of the top five best-selling album positions in South Korea are held by BTS.
